1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method and an information processing program, and more particularly, to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method and an information processing program which more safely and easily enable addition, deletion and updating of functions.
2. Description of Related Art
In related art, as a method for updating software which is incorporated in a product later, there has been known a method in which the transfer of firmware is performed via a network such as Ethernet (trade mark), and the transferred firmware is recorded in a recording medium such as a flash memory or a hard disc (see J-P-A-2005-11209, for example).
In such a case, a program which performs the transfer of the firmware and a program which records the firmware in the recording medium is preliminarily incorporated in the product (at the time of shipment from a factory).
Here, along with the increase of volume of software which is incorporated in the product, an attempt has been made to use the software in common besides the use of hardware in common. For example, there has been known a method in which a general-purpose platform (constitution which includes general-purpose hardware and software) which installs software used in common by various products in a miniaturized CPU (Central Processing Unit) has been developed in common and the general-purpose platform is incorporated in various products thus realizing the reduction of the developing cost and the shortening of the development period of the hardware and software of the respective products.
A method for updating the above-mentioned software in a later stage (a software updating function) is requested by respective devices. Accordingly, to realize the reduction of developing cost and the shortening of the developing period on this software updating function, it is desirable to install the software updating function as a common software of the above-mentioned general-purpose platform.
That is, the respective products into which the general-purpose platform is incorporated have, in general, functions intrinsic to the products, and the general-purpose platform which provides the software updating function as the general-purpose function performs processing such as addition, deletion, updating and the like of the software intrinsic to the products for realizing the functions intrinsic to the products.